Suicide Bomber Kills 17, Injures 50 in Khost, Afghanistan

A suicide bomber detonated a bomb strapped to himself in the middle of an anti-government corruption in the eastern province of Khost, Afghanistan on Thursday, killing 17 people and injuring over 50 more. According to government officials, the explosion caused by the suicide bomber was near the area where the provincial officials were located. In the same area was a lawmaker who aided in the organization of the demonstration.

There has been no claim of responsibility to the attack at the current time. Moreover, it is unclear if the attack may have been linked to the Taliban.

A separate attack in the southern province of Helmand killed a district police officer, placed by the Taliban. Violence has been increasing in the past few months after troops were withdrawn from the country. More than 10,000 casualties were caused by suicide bombers and IEDs last year. Although suicide bombings are frequent across Afghanistan, the attack in Khost was uncharacteristically deadly, as it was detonated in a large, crowded area.